Opinion: N.Y. Policy Puts Undue Money Burden on Child-Care Groups

The head of a Harlem social-service charity, writing in the New York Daily News, chastises the city for adopting a policy demanding that some nonprofit groups raise millions of dollars to pay for part of the work City Hall hires them to perform.

In a May request for proposals from groups that provide child-care for low-income workers, New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services said it would pay only 93.3 percent of the costs and that the charities must provide the remainder, according to David Nocenti, executive director of Union Settlement Association.

The demand amounts to a $35-million cost for charities over the life of the four-year, $486-million child-care program, Mr. Nocenti writes. He says this “beg to play” policy will force providers to limit services to needy children or divert resources from their other work.

“Everyone understands that governments are strapped for cash and need to find ways to reduce costs,” Mr. Nocenti says. “But refusing to pay for the required services doesn’t cut costs—it just forces someone else to pay for them.”